Prune mustard and pistachio ice cream with prunes and Armagnac

The prunes and Armagnac for Pascal Aussignac's glorious dessert need to be made a month in advance to optimise the rich flavours. Do not fear if you don't have the time - prunes in Armagnac is a classic combination and can be bought ready-made online or from specialist French delicatessens.

Meringues

Equipment

Method

Start by making a tea for the prunes and Armagnac. Combine 1/2 a litre of water and the green tea bag in a small pan. Bring to a simmer, then allow to cool before adding the prunes. Leave to marinate in the fridge for 24 hours

After this time, strain off the tea and cover the soft prunes with the Armagnac. Marinate in a sealed container for 10 days at room temperature

200ml of Armagnac

3

After the 10 days, transfer the prunes to a suitably-sized sterilised jar. Boil the water, sugar, orange zest, cloves, cinnamon and star anise in a pan, then pour this liquid over the prunes. Allow to cool completely before sealing the jar and leaving to marinate for at least 1 month

For the ice cream, whisk the yolks with the sugar in a large bowl. Bring the cream, milk and glucose to the boil, then pour over the yolks and sugar mixture, whisking continuously. Return to the pan and bring the mix to 81°C, stirring throughly

Gently fold in 1/3 of the icing sugar with a spatula. Add the remaining icing sugar and mix until incorporated

60g of icing sugar

10

Gently spoon the meringue mix into a piping bag and pipe 5cm long and 2cm thick fingers onto greaseproof paper. Bake for 1 1/2 hours until crispy, then turn off the oven and leave the meringues in the oven to cool completely

11

Serve 4-5 prunes alongside a scoop of the ice cream on each plate. Add a couple of the crunchy meringues and some crushed pistachios before serving